We Have Come So Far exhibits six drawn fables to rethink our relationship with material extraction and consumption.
A series of large-format drawings illustrates six fables, each a commentary on one aspect of Victoria’s whaling history and culture. Human use of whales and whale products plays a key role in global mobility, trade networks, and technological developments. At times, whale products are ubiquitous in domestic use, with whale oil and bone used in lighting, soap, lubricants, and varnishes, among other things. These days, the sacrifice and the horrors of whaling in terms of whale population and the changing of ocean ecologies are easily comprehended with our modern relationship with the whale being one of awe, wonder, and care. However, other extractive material practices still occur, in both ocean and terrestrial environments. The same method of ruthless extraction of materials for human use still proliferates in places throughout Victoria, Australia, and globally. The ambition of this work is to highlight past and current ignorance regarding the finite and entangled nature of what we often consider ‘material resources.’ The fables aim to provoke designers, makers, and users to think about the beings, places, and ecosystems impacted through their material use, particularly in relation to materials which may seem infinitely abundant, as the whale did to early settlers.
